Artistic rebels of their time, the two groups ‘Die Brücke’ (The Bridge) and ‘Der Blaue Reiter’ (The Blue Rider) played an important role in the emergence of German expressionism. During this early 20th-century movement, artists stopped painting physical reality and instead used a variety of techniques to reflect feelings and ideas.

Founded in 1905 by four students at the Technical University of Dresden, members of ‘Die Brücke’ used vivid colour and bold images to portray intense emotion. Although they began by painting aspects of the urban life of Dresden, they soon started painting nude portraits and life-drawings as well as creating woodcuts. ‘Die Brucke’ even created their own manifesto, stating that they were part of a generation “who want freedom in our work and in our lives, independence from older, established forces”. ‘Der Blaue Reiter’, founded in Munich in 1911 by a combination of Russian emigrants and German natives, shared the same style as ‘Die Brücke’. Members of ‘Der Blaue Reiter’ didn’t have a clear manifesto, but they did believe in the symbolic power of vivid colour and imagery. Both groups were particularly interested in primitivism and tried to use their paintings to capture the essence of individual freedom and natural experiences.

Individuals whose works are on display include Alexej von Jawlensky, Wassily Knadinsky, Paul Klee, August Macke, Emil Molde and Max Pechstein.